Industry 4.0 solutions increase added value in the manufacturing industries

Networking, transparency and the simplification of complex processes are the keys to higher added value and economical production, even when it comes to small batch sizes. Therefore, people, machines and processes can no longer be considered in isolation from each other in the manufacturing industry. Rather, operators must aim for the integrated planning and control of information and goods. The individual elements of these value chains are equipped with more and more intelligence. This enables the highly efficient interlinking of all factors involved. viastore is a pioneer in this regard.

The intralogistics specialist itself has undergone a transformation from metal-cutting manufacturer to digital-tech company, developing over the course of five generations from a locksmith’s shop and a manufacturer of machinery and equipment to a system integrator and software house. The company enables its customers to achieve higher added value through an effective and integrated flow of goods in logistics and production. The experts achieve this either by enhancing the availability, economic efficiency and performance of existing storage and conveyor systems, or by simplifying complex tasks through new, intuitive systems. viastore has preserved and cultivated its industrial roots in order to increase the efficiency of manufacturing companies. This includes, for example, the reduction of excessively high WIP and stock levels due to non-transparent and non-integrated processes in logistics and production, as these unnecessarily tie up capital, incur costs and restrict the scalability of the business model. The fact that customers need spare parts worldwide quickly and at specific times also places high demands on intralogistics. Another challenge is the trend towards individualization and, as a result, the production of small batch sizes, which can only be economical if processes are seamlessly interlinked and easy to handle.

viastore enables industrial companies to organize flows of information and goods holistically along the value chain in order to gain competitive advantages. The system and software house takes a comprehensive view of the material flow, shaping it accordingly from goods receipt, production and assembly to shipping. This leads to greater flexibility in logistics and production while simultaneously reducing inventories and errors. To this end, the experts implement individual solutions tailored to the needs of the customer, from raw goods to delivery, from semi-finished products to assembly supply, from milk run processes to spare parts distribution. With its warehouse management system (WMS) viadat, viastore offers proven and future-proof standard software for managing and controlling the entire material flow in warehouse and production. It is flexible, intuitive, easy to configure and through its KPI tools offers extensive possibilities for data evaluation and analysis and thus process improvement. In addition, viastore has extended its WMS to include production processes so that even more extensive networking and transparency along the entire value chain can be realized. Here, the company works closely with MES specialists.

viastore uses numerous Industry 4.0 technologies to provide significant benefits to its customers. For example, the intralogistics professional relies on virtual reality techniques when planning complex systems. These provide decisive support in the decision-making process and enable a needs-oriented conception. For example, the specialists can use such techniques to realistically plan and project a logistics center with a production connection. Technical and spatial conditions as well as customer wishes are flexibly adapted. In this way, users can see what the warehouse will look like later even in the development phase. Processes such as order picking are also tested in advance for ergonomics, practicality and cost-effectiveness.

By means of virtual commissioning, viastore tests and implements highly networked material flow systems digitally in advance. All components are mapped by the experts in a digital model prior to the actual implementation and simulate their functionality. This shortens the time spent on the construction site, increases quality and efficiency and reduces customer risks. For this reason, viastore was recognized by the state of Baden-Württemberg as one of “100 Places for Industry 4.0”.

Moreover, viastore enables its customers to achieve high availability through predictive maintenance, prospective analyses and integrated system monitoring. For this purpose, the specialists have developed tools with which to evaluate the generated data and use it for predictive maintenance and the continuous improvement of system performance. This reduces downtimes, increases operational reliability and saves the operator costs.